[Korean Farmers' Newspaper, Reporter Kim Young-min] A selection marker for breeding blast-resistant rice varieties has been developed, making it likely that the development of high-quality, blast-resistant rice varieties will become easier in the future. Rice blast is a phenomenon where the grains in rice panicles sprout before the rice is harvested. It mainly occurs when rice falls over due to heavy rains during the harvest season, high temperatures, or typhoons, significantly lowering the quality of the rice. In fact, blast damage caused by heavy rains during the harvest season occurred in 15,000 hectares in 2016, and damage from falling over due to typhoons and blast occurred in about 20,000 hectares in 2020. Researchers from the National Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology are working on varieties that are vulnerable to blast.